US President Donald Trump fell asleep multiple times during a two and a half hour Cabinet meeting last Tuesday.
During the meeting Trump discussed the media over-focusing on his health, talking about “Sleepy Joe” Biden, and saying “You’d think they’d say ‘Well, Trump’s done a great job on the border’.... but you always find something new. Like, ‘Is he in good health? Biden was great, but is Trump in good health?’” before closing his eyes and nodding off.
The Washington Post worked out that Trump closed his eyes for extended periods that added to around six minutes of the meeting.
He slept through US Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, complimenting his foreign policy.
Rubio said this year, under Trump’s presidency, had been “the most transformational year in American foreign policy since the end of the Second World War, at least.”
Trump also took the opportunity to attack the New York Times for an article that said he was showing signs of aging. Talking about himself in the third person he stated that “Trump is sharp, but they’re not sharp.”
Was Trump up all night?
Trump made nearly 150 posts and reposts on Truth Social throughout Monday night, before attending the cabinet meeting in the morning.
His posts ranged from reposting right-wing conspiracy theorists, to criticizing the Democrats, to posting pictures and videos of himself.
Although Trump always posts a lot, 150 posts in one night is significantly above average, even for him.
Later in the day, Trump stood next to Senator Ted Cruz during the 40 minute announcement of Trump accounts, a new tax-advantaged investment account for children, where he appeared much more alert.
Cruz commented “I don’t think [Trump] sleeps at all.”
This Cabinet meeting was not the first time Trump has fallen asleep in meetings, just last month he nodded off during a press conference about weight-loss drugs.
California Governor, Gavin Newsom, tweeted a photo of Trump sleeping at the press conference, captioned, “DOZY DON IS BACK.”
Aging or just exhausted?
Trump said, “right now, I think I’m sharper than I was 25 years ago,” arguing that claims that he was facing the realities of aging are inaccurate.
During the meeting Trump mostly kept his hands underneath the desk, however, at one point he sleepily reached up to touch his face, revealing two plasters on his right hand.
Typically his right hand is covered in makeup which covers the persistent bruising that often accompanies aging, usually due to thinner skin and weaker blood vessels.
The White House refers questions about the bruising to a medical report released on July 17 that said Trump had been diagnosed with chronic venous insufficiency, a condition that is common in people over 70, but does not cause bruising on the hands.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt, insisted “President Trump was listening attentively and running the entire three-hour marathon Cabinet meeting,” although the photographs of the meeting suggest otherwise.
Trump has also recently claimed he had an “absolutely perfect” MRI before explaining that he didn’t know which part of his body was imaged, saying “It wasn’t the brain because I took a cognitive test and I aced it.”
He went on to verbally attack a reporter who asked him about the cognitive test, saying, “I got a perfect mark, which you would be incapable of doing.”